The structural verification of basement walls under earth pressure loading with low surcharge is often a difficult part of the everyday work of engineers. This situation is often encountered for basement walls under terrace doors, stair flights, masonry light wells etc., where the theoretically necessary surcharge loading is lacking. In this case, it is possible to transfer the acting forces from earth pressure with an arch model. One constructively possible measure to resist the resulting arch thrust is the provision of a sufficiently stiff reinforced concrete beam at the head of the basement wall. The article explains the verification of this method according to current standards.